Ok. Can't believe you actually pulled the you never played ball card (which I still continue to do) as if that means anything. LOL.
Well yeah if he was 6'10 and still had the same skillset, if Smith had 80% of Klay's dribble skills he would be hands down #1.
Every person in this thread has at least played horse a few times. That’s why no one takes you seriously Nick Cage.
Shaq? Giannis? KG? Tim Duncan? Not sure why you want a big man to have an advanced dribble game. Even Lebron and Kawhi werent exactly dribbling it up as 18 yr olds. Jabari is pretty much the modern NBA big man in a nutshell, with the ability to face up and space on offense while being able to switch 1-5 on defense. He is ready to go day 1, but with his young age he has kore than enough time to add more skills to his playbook. I'd take him no 1 and never look back. You can always find iso players in the draft, every year you get talent like that. But elite 3nD PFs how many are there in the NBA right now? There's AD, KD, Tatum and that's about it. The rest are good offensively but suck defensively like KaT or C Wood or dont have reliable 3 pt shooting like Giannis or Mobley. The rarity of Jabari makes the no 1 target this year you wont find guys like him in an average draft.
Smith games is mainly on the perimeter so yeah his dribble game is a huge part of what he will need to be a great player in the NBA, we are not talking about being a good NBA player we are talking about franchise level players and or the ability to get a good shot in crunch time when the clock is winding down. Lets actually stay on topic and not try to act like I don't think he will be at least a very good NBA player. Lebron had a very advanced dribble when he came to the NBA you might need to check your facts.
I disagree slightly i just don't feel 3&d player is what you want out of #1. It should be more of a foundational player. I worry about how bad he is attacking the rim.
There's a no1 every year how many turn out to be "foundational players"? The reality is there is skill set type and then skillset quality for prospects. In a vacuum yes you want a guy who can create more than a guy who does 3nD. But if the quality of 3nD is higher tha the creation quality of other prospects then the choice flips around. Steph Curry is basically a 3 with no D is he considered a foundational player or not? Btw Jabari averages 4.8 fts attempts a night he averages more attempts than Chet Holmgren. Dude doesnt shy away from contact, just because he is a 3nD player doesnt mean thats all there is to him.
That's cool but it's a more inherrant skill than most basketball things. Name one good to great player that just started being a plus dribbler once they got into the pro's? It's why Benny Mac is still a jouneyman.
You're joking right? Yea, Curry is an elite shooter but he also has elite handles and elite movement. GSW have been so dominant offensively because of how effective the off ball movements of Curry(and Klay). Elite movement sounds dumb but it's the difference between Curry/Miller/Rip and guys like Kapono/Bertrans/Bonner. Not to mention all the screens Curry sets.. his movement/iq is Elite. Jabari is an elite shooter he doesn't have the same elite movement and similar to the athletes who lack elite footwork we rarely see players develop it once in the league. Not to say it's not possible. Between movement, footwork and handles. Handles maybe the easiest to coach up to a serviceable level but no guarantees.
What does "elite handles" have to do with Curry bombing from long range? Is Curry called the goat dribbler or the goat shooter? Although curry has nice handles, when he retires he'll be known for his shooting and range till half court not his handles. Elite movement? Bruh Curry isnt exactly zipping and zagging out there like he's young DRose lol wtf. He's not doing step backs before he launches most of the time he hardly moves before he takes a 3. You're joking right? The difference between Bertans and Curry isnt "elite movement", its Curry shooting 38% on 11 attempts from 3 while Bertans is shooting 31% on 4 attempts. Off ball movement is a function of coach plays,your ability to shoot and willingness to move off the ball. If you can shoot and you want to then you will have good offball movement, if you cant then you wont. Its that simple.
Smith would be my 1st target, Pablo 2nd, Chet 3rd. A shot maker who is a long wing defender would be great.
